The performance of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the current ODI series in Australia, according to Australian great Ricky Ponting, will decide if the star Indian duo can continue till the 2027 World Cup.
On a lively Perth track, Kohli and Rohit, who are now one-format players, performed poorly against Australia’s strong pace attack in their first match for India since March. However, India’s collective batting performance was also a disaster and they lost by seven wickets.
On Thursday, the second ODI of the three-match series will be played in Adelaide, where the conditions would be much better for the Indian batters than it was in Perth.
Speaking on “ICC Review,” Ponting stated that the renowned duo should focus on short-term goals rather than just the 2027 ODI World Cup.
“The one thing I don’t like hearing from anyone is that ‘I’ve achieved everything in the game’ because I think you still have to have some really short-term goals and not just be hanging on to try and get through to the 2027 World Cup,” Ponting said.
“Virat’s always been a highly motivated person. And I’d like to think that he’s probably sat down and even just given himself some goals and things that he can achieve in this series here in Australia and not be just waiting and killing time for that next World Cup to come around.
“What we know with both of those guys, at their absolute best, yes, of course they’re in India’s best team. But can they find their best between now and when that World Cup rocks around?” he asked.
“And that’s only an answer that we’ll find out in a short period of time (during the series),” said the World Cup-winning bating great.
